AIO for not wanting to contribute $3000/month to my parents’ mortgage even though they say they’ll pay me back
I’m a 22F and recently started working full-time. I make about $6,400/month after taxes and currently live at home.
My parents want me to contribute $3,000/month toward their mortgage for 3 years. They say it’s a loan and that they will pay me back when I need it. Their reasoning is that putting this much toward the mortgage will save them around $150k in interest, and that it’s also financially beneficial for me because I’m living at home and avoiding rent/living expenses.
I understand their perspective, and I do want to help my parents. However, $3,000/month feels overwhelming to me. That’s almost half of my take-home pay, and if I contribute for 3 years, they said they would likely take another 3 years to pay me back. That means my money could be tied up for around 6 years.
I kept telling them that I don’t feel comfortable with $3000 because it’s a significant portion of my income and I’m giving up access to the money even if they do pay me back eventually and they’re like why? What other expenses do you have? And making me feel insane for feeling this way.
I tried negotiating down to $2,000/month because I still wanted to contribute but also wanted to keep more financial flexibility. My dad said he doesn’t want to force me, but he also doesn’t want to negotiate. He knows how much I make and feels like this is a reasonable expectation. My parents made me feel selfish almost for not wanting to contribute the amount they expect.
The part I’m struggling with is that they are very vague about repayment. When I suggested writing down the terms because this is a six-figure amount of money, they got upset and said things like, “So you don’t trust us?” and “If you don’t want to, then don’t.” I’m not saying I think they would intentionally not pay me back, I just feel like a written agreement is reasonable for $108,000.
I also feel conflicted because living at home isn’t completely free for me emotionally. I appreciate having a place to stay, but there are sacrifices involved, and I want to eventually move out and build my own life. My parents focus on the fact that I don’t have many monthly expenses right now, but I feel like I’m also trying to save for my own future and independence.
I’m not trying to avoid helping my family. I just don’t know if committing $3,000/month for years is the right decision for me. This is almost half of what I make and it makes me feel incredibly anxious knowing I lose access for it, even if it is temporary.
AIO?
Edit: thank you all for your comments I have been reading each one individually, I genuinely felt insane and gaslit for thinking this is crazy, thank you for helping me feel less alone
edit 2: sorry if this wasn’t clear but their mortgage payment is less than $3k, they just want me to add extra money to lower their principal balance so they owe less interest in the long run. i don’t believe they will pay off the loan in 3 years, it’s just an arbitrary time frame my dad said